Recently I found myself headed to Singapore, a place that has always been on my travel list, but I’ve been delaying actually visiting. The reason I needed to put my travel plans in to gear and book a last minute trip?

Endless Indian food.

Oh and THESE TWO (exclude the noodle man).

Clay, the noodle man, me, and Jenna

I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to be the happy third wheel for two of my best friends from college that I don’t think I’ve actually seen since Thanksgiving 2013. Usually I at least do some research about the spot I’m traveling to before I head there, but for this trip I had no time and no interest other than having a delicious (and uhhh extremely expensive) Singapore Sling and catching up with these two lovebirds.

Travel Guide Singapore

How to Get There

To make the most of the weekend without paying an arm and a leg, I flew to Singapore from Hong Kong with Scoot. To return I took an afternoon flight back to Hong Kong with Jetstar. I had to check in a bag because of the jar of kaya I was bringing back with me. That was an extra cost of SG$25 by the time I booked the check in luggage, but totally worth it for the kaya (which I’ve tried to make at home with frustrating results).

Where to Stay

I booked a deluxe room at the Scarlet Hotel.

The Scarlet Singapore
33 Erskine Road

069333, Singapore

Peter couldn’t join me on this trip, but he generously let me use his Asia Miles to book my stay at the Scarlet and it was a great deal using miles, even though I booked my stay last minute (keep in mind this was not a holiday weekend). The hotel staff was very accommodating when I arrived early and was able to get my room cleaned almost immediately after I arrived despite it being several hours before check in.

The location was super convenient, right between Chinatown and Bar Street and only a 5 minute walk from the train station. My room was small, but I didn’t spend much time at the hotel and it was just right for one person or two people without a lot of luggage.

Where to Eat/Drink

In my opinion, street food is the way to go in Singapore. I’ll do more posts on food in Chinatown and Little India later, but I was much more impressed by the cheap stall eats than with the more upscale restaurants.

You should however splurge on a Singapore Sling at the Raffles Hotel where the drink was allegedly invented. Although we thought the back story behind the drink sounded a littttttle bit like the story behind how infamous frat party jungle juice was invented (it was so faux pas for women to drink that they invented a girly, pink cocktail that basically tasted like juice) I can’t lie— the Singapore Sling is delicious, the hotel is beautiful, and the experience is a must.

with the inventor of the Singapore Sling

I’d also recommend having drinks at the rooftop bar of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. It’s a little bit confusing as to how to get to the top, but take the elevator up to Ce La Vie to have a cocktail and a look at the view.